Our King
by Micatfish
Summary: Thanks to a certain goat's plan, Kei Nozaki and Neferpitou ended up in a strange world with rukh. Together with the 4th prince of the Kou Empire, their chosen king, the two must live and battle in their new world. An AU where Hakuryuu has loyal retainers and things are not as hopeless as in canon; Magi x HunterxHunter x Cuticle Detective Inaba
1. Prologue

**Our King**

AU, Magi x HunterxHunter x Cuticle Detective Inaba crossover

**Summary:** Thanks to a certain goat, Kei Nozaki and Neferpitou ended up in a strange world with rukh. Together with the 4th prince of Kou, their king, they live and battle in their new world.

**Pairings:** Judal x Hakuryuu,_ possible _Kei x Kougyoku and Jafar x Hakuryuu, Implied Sinbad x Jafar and Alibaba x Morgiana

**Warning:** Possible OOCness, yaoi (gay pairings), _**spoilers for all three manga/anime series**_, etc.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Magi, Hunter x Hunter, or Cuticle Detective Inaba, or their characters. Each respectively belongs to Shinobu Ohtaka, Yoshihiro Togashi, and Mochi.

**Note:** It's not really a crossover, I think, because this fic will focus on the world of Magi, so only Kei Nozaki and Pitou will be the focus characters from the other animes. There will be mentions though… Also there might be more pairings; those listed above are pairings I want to include.

**A/N 2016:** I decided to revised all my chapters because I really appreciate all the reviews/favs/follows this fic has gotten. When I was rereading my posted chapters to refresh my memory, I noticed a lot of flaws and plot holes (admittedly because I was itching to write Sindria Arc and wanted to get there ASAP, thus neglected to properly set up this fic). So I want to apologize to all my readers, as such is not the quality you all deserve and such would reflect poorly in the plot unless I revise these chapters.

That said, there is not much difference in the revised prologue, chapter 1, and chapter 2. Chapter 3 is when things actually changed, since I elaborated more on Pitou, Kei, and Hakuryuu's relationships and situations.

Also one last thing, I decided to leave the honorifics -dono (Lord/Lady, but lack self-humbling), -san (Mr./Ms.), and -sama (Lord/Lady/Master; "a term of great respect, one step higher than -san") untranslated because they don't really have an English equivalent that wouldn't really sound weird or one that is completely accurate. -kun and -chan as well because they don't have an English equivalent at all.

I'm sorry for this long and wordy note ^^;;;

* * *

**Prologue**

In a forest...

One punch to the face was all it took... for the royal guard to lose, and sent flying through the air until Chimera Ant's battered body finally slammed into a tree trunk that did not get ripped apart by the force.

Covered in fresh blue blood that spilled from the wounds, Pitou thought of the Chimera Ant King, and the human boy coming closer to complete his revenge for a precious friend that had been killed for entertainment.

_I'm glad I'm the one to die…!_ Pitou thought, although barely conscious, as the aberrant soul - recombined from the souls of a human, a cat, an ant, and possibly more - slowly departed from the physical world to cross into the afterlife...

Only to never reach Heaven or Hell.

v****v

In a normal house owned by the Mafia...

Standing on top of a table, Don Valentino laughed as he thought of getting rid of the wolf once and for all. Now that Noah had successfully created a machine that will send the wolf to another world, hence erasing his enemy's existence forever, all he had to do was lure the wolf into a trap and force him into the machine's chair. Having already sent a letter containing a fake invitation to a party to the Secret Doberman's residence, the only thing left to do was to wait.

He did not have to wait long, fortunately, as Hiroshi Inaba and his companions burst through the door just seconds later. Everything was going as planned.. until Lorenzo accidentally shoved one of Inaba's assistants, Kei Nozaki, into the modified leather chair meant for the wolf, while trying to dodge Inaba's signature attack.

Just as Kei disappeared from the room in a flash of light, the Cuticle Bolt attack electrocuted both Lorenzo and the machine.

This resulted in the raven-haired boy being sent away with currently no way of returning and a certain goat being strangled to death by his streak-haired underling.

Unknown to the unconscious 16-year-old, his body dragged along a soul journeying to the afterlife.

v****v

In the Imperial Palace of the Kou Empire...

The first imperial princess, Hakuei Ren, and her most faithful retainer, Seishun Ri, were sparring in a secluded training ground. As they stopped to rest and rehydrate themselves, Seishun brought up one of their usual topics - to which Hakuei shook her head. It had been many times Seishun suggested to his princess that she should hire an assistant for her younger brother. However, the only reply he ever received was that she'll think about it. This time too, she merely told him that she haven't found anyone she could entrust with Hakuryuu, and ended the conversation. Seishun could see, despite the princess's efforts, that she was constantly worried for Hakuryuu, who frequently avoid or ignore everyone in the palace but them and his tutors. As such, he kept suggesting, hoping that eventually she would agree to do so.

That way, both hers and his concerns will dwindle.

Unbeknownst to them, a bored teen was eavesdropping as he chewed his peach, hidden among the leaves of the tall tree right above their heads.

/vvv/

Within a second, two bodies materialized out of thin air and crashed into the backyard of the palace, one of a half-dead humanoid animal and an unconscious human teenager. The enormous amount of Nen left in the Chimera Ant's body had transported the body there - instead of continuing to fuel a technique named Terpsichora - as soon as it felt that its soul was in another world. Pitou was saved from having to coexist with a certain human in his comparatively fragile body.

No one noticed the unusual event except for a 14-year-old prince with a burn scar on the left side of his face, Hakuryuu Ren.


	2. All Conscious

**Chapter 1: All Conscious**

Hakuryuu could not believe his eyes, although he could only see clearly out of one of them. A humanoid cat had appeared out of nowhere, just a few inches off the ground, before crashing onto the dirt floor with a quiet thud. There was also a ruffle among the bushes, but the prince paid no attention to it. Seeing him - or was it her? Hakuryuu could not tell - so badly injured, his first thought was that it was the work of his mother and Al-Thamen. They were the only ones he knew who would such horrid things, but he could not jump to conclusion yet. Not with all the things that had been happening over the last few years.

The young prince took in a deep breath, then a step forward before stopping. He turned around on his heel to head back into the palace. The mysterious creature was not dead and would need medical attention as soon as possible if he was to survive.

_Is this the afterlife? _Pitou thought, _No…_ Not while he still felt so numb and wet from blood like when he was fighting that boy, Gon. All around him, there were smells of flowers, grass, trees, and birds. Farther away, he could hear humans, their footsteps, and their tools. They felt weird, not like the rare humans or the ordinary humans though - just weird, like their souls were slightly different. Still, even with the differences, this couldn't be the afterlife... not when the smells of blood and death were so strong.

The royal guard's next thought was of his king, was he safe? Pouf and Youpi must be with him, and his king was the strongest, so he had to be - since Gon will never be able to use Nen again. Not after killing - no, defeating him - since he was still alive. Wherever this place was.

Then, the presence that had stood there since he became conscious, took a step forward; the sole of the foot crushing the blades of grass a few feet away. Pitou tensed and tried to spring up, but his body only twitched. Some of his important bones were broken, and he couldn't generate even an ounce of his Nen - although he could still feel the power inside of him. Just as he was waiting, however, the enemy turned and moved away.

Neferpitou did not have time to relax, though, for a faint existence appeared right next to him. How could he have not noticed!? Pitou's instinct took over, his eyes forcing themselves open as his body tried to move once more. All he could see was black and blurry. The boy had punched him in the face after all.

Kei was soothing the bump on his head, confused by the numbness, though that feeling was quickly consumed by dread as he took in his surroundings. He had woke up outside, near a building that certainly did not belong in his time, with his body aching all over the place. _This was probably what Valentino and his gang planned_, Kei determined, _to send Inaba-san to another world or time._ There was something odd in the air, a fuzzy feeling nibbling at his skin, that made him think of the former theory. Either way, Kei was stuck here until they find a way to bring him home. As his head cleared out of the leaves, the 16-year-old boy was met with a horrifying sight.

Sprawled on the grass-less ground was a half human/half cat creature - who appeared to be female - lying on her side covered in cuts, bruises, and blue liquid that seemed to be blood. Her arms and legs were twisted and bent in impossible angles. Layers of dried blood covered her face and hands - which only had four fingers each. Blood trailed from her mouth, indicating her organs were damaged, possibly stabbed by broken ribs. Her hair and fur dirtied by dirt and whatnots, turned into ugly shades, making it impossible for Kei to tell what color they originally were.

Although he was allergic to cats, Kei was an obsessive cat lover; the sight of Pitou scarred him even more than it would have if the one injured before him was purely human. As he approached to help, however, Pitou's eyes snapped open. His glowing, ruby-red eyes stared into him aggressively, causing the cat lover to step back instinctively. For some reason, he felt as though he was about to be suffocated.

As he stared back uncertainly, the teen noticed that the humanoid cat's gaze was unfocused and clouded - as though she couldn't see well, if at all.

Gathering his courage, Kei bent forward, his arm extended… only to jump back when invisible claws dug into his arm. With his left hand covering the deep, bloody scratch marks, the boy look at the now crimson claws fearfully. His blood slid down the three of the four fingers, dyeing the pearl color red, and painfully reminding him of his injury. He had never endured anything so painful in his life… except that one time… despite interacting almost regularly with the mafia and terrorists.

_Now that I think about it, Ogi-san always took the brunt of the dangers… including Yuuta-kun.._

Though the broken arm now lay motionless on the ground, Kei did not dare venture closer. A decision finalized by Pitou's sharp hiss at his slight shift in posture, which happened to be an inch forward.

It was only when footsteps and voices were heard that Kei snapped out of his daze and hid himself in the bushes he woke up among… unaware of the blood trails he left behind.

v****v

Meanwhile…

There was nothing but silence throughout the forest. Neither birds nor critters dared to remain within the range of the deep, anguishing aura sweeping through every cracks and space - no matter how tiny - that could be used as a hiding place. Yet, there was nothing. Gon could not find Pitou, although the creature had been right in front of him. It couldn't have gone far, it shouldn't have even been able to move. Not unless… not unless it... Gon couldn't compute. Months of holding in his rage, of locking everything inside while planning and training so hard, had been for nothing. That waiting, that _one hour_ of waiting for his enemy to finish healing that stranger, had been his… Before he could identify the words struggling to form in his forcefully grown brain, Gon felt someone entering into his En range at lightning speed. Killua.

"Gon… is that you?"

"Killua, I ca… Kite is dead…" As Gon looked down into his best friend's eyes, seeing but not really registering the emotions storming within them, he couldn't bring himself to say that he couldn't get Kite back. He couldn't say that Pitou escaped, that he couldn't avenge Kite despite everything.

It would be weeks later, after waking up from his coma, that Gon learned Kite wasn't truly dead.


	3. First Step to Taming

**Chapter 2: First Step to Taming**

When Hakuryuu came back along with four servants to aid the dying humanoid, Pitou glared at them with slit pupils, visibly causing the normal humans to tremble as they huddled together. All of them froze, although there was at least 15 feet between each human and the Chimera Ant.

Still, Hakuryuu steeled himself, by thinking of what his late brothers would do, and stepped forward. Instantly, a loud hiss was heard throughout the surrounding areas as a clawed hand feebly attempted to take a defensive stance. Neferpitou's wide, flaring red eyes spoke of the danger he was capable of... Even more, however, they spoke of the fear and doubts plaguing the beast's mind - at least to Hakuryuu.

Gaining the courage he needed, the scarred prince continued moving forward, ignoring the cowardly servants' screams as they plead for him to stop and back away.

A couple moments had already passed when the first princess of Kou and her assistant arrived from the inner palace, swords still gripped in their hands. Although they had come as soon as they heard the loud hisses and cries that could only belong to that of a wild beast, the two found themselves unable to describe the scene in front of them. With his hair and clothes in a tattered mess, Hakuryuu was struggling to keep hold of a bloodied humanoid cat - while crying and spewing out almost unintelligible words. Before Hakuei and Seishun could even speak, however, the struggling creased and silent followed.

A brave servant, soon followed by others, slowly ventured forward. They met no resistance as they worked on moving the humanoid cat to an infirmary.

To be honest, Pitou wasn't sure what happened. All he knew what that no matter how much he threatened and harmed the scarred boy, he wouldn't go away. At first the boy had been calm enough - even if nervous. But then, he broke down and cried when Pitou aggressively refused to let him help - at least that what the boy had stammered out along with "stupid" and "you're going to die!"

In the end Pitou became too tired to fight. Deciding that giving in wouldn't be too bad - the humans here seemed weak and harmless anyway - he let himself sink into the warmness of the boy without a word. He could kill them and search for his king after he recovered more strength. Right now, he could not even summon his Nen.

Kei was more than amazed. He had watched the whole scene behind the bushes, watched as the boy who seemed to be younger than him held and calmed the cat girl even as she struggled and clawed him. Staring at his torn, expensive-looking cloth soaked with blood, it sent shivers through his spine - how could the boy stand that?! Unconsciously, his hand stroked his injured arm. It was just damp in comparison.

"Who are you?"

Kei jumped, turning to meet a sky-blue-haired boy who was looking at him suspiciously. _Is that dyed? _Kei found himself thinking. The thought quickly evaporated, however, when he realized a metal sword was pointing at him. In this world, he might be killed for real.

Waving his hands desperately in front of him, the raven-haired stuttered out, "M-My name is Kei Nozaki and, um, I ca-came for a-a job-b!" Kei averted his eyes for a second, "but I got lost and e-ended up here! Hahaha… I'm so sorry!" He quickly bowed.

Hakuei nodded in acknowledgement as she gracefully appeared next to her assistant. Reluctantly, Seishun lowered his sword. "Princess…"

The cat lover let out a breath in relief at the sound of metal dropping, but did not dare raise his head even as he paled at the thought of being in a royalty's presence - at their palace no less. _I'm doomed. I'm totally doomed._ Kei thought.

Lost in a mental breakdown, he must have misheard the princess' words as he quickly straighten up, and said "I-I beg your pardon?"

Smiling, she repeated her words. "Would you like to become my brother's assistant?"

v****v

Meanwhile…

"I hate to say this Goat, but we have to work together to bring Kei back." said Hiroshi Inaba, bending down to Don Valentino's eye level. Beside the private eye was his (former) partner, Ogino Kuniharu, who held a specialized handcuff with a neutral expression. Although he wanted to arrest the goat, doing so would not make rescuing Kei easier given the government's current technology. They needed Noah, the teen genius currently glaring with disgust evidenced in her indigo eyes, to cooperate with them.

"How can you say that aro!?" said Valentino as he swung in midair, "I am tied up, I am!" All four of his hooves were tightly bounded together with a rope tied to the ceiling, leaving the Don upside down. On the opposite side of the room, frantic shouts of Lorenzo were being muffled by a special type of bondage done by Inaba. How he had managed to gag a guy wearing a bag over his head without taking it off remain a mystery that only masochists would know. Of the people who could still move freely, there was no one strong enough who could save Don Valentino, except one. "Gabriella!"

The streak-haired woman scowled as she lift up her gun. Inaba Hiroshi tensed as he gazed behind him toward the female assassin, but settled his eyes on his blond assistant, Yuuta Sasaki. The wolf was silently telling Yuuta to help him transform in case he needed to fight. The assistant shrugged slightly before turning to Noah, who only paid him a second glance as she kept her eyes on Gabriella. "What?" said the streak-haired assassin, before clicking her tongue and lowering her gun. "I'm not going to shoot him." said Gabriella, "I mean my minion getting send to some dangerous place without me or my permission wasn't his fault."

"You already strangled me, you did." said Valentino, as he thought that was the reason he got captured in the first place. When it came to people Gabriella counted as her underlings, she was awfully protective and caring.

"Kei's my assistant, streaked hair!" said Inaba, "And it's you guys' fault he got sent away with that machine! What if he ends up dead?"

"Shut up Wolf!" said Gabriella, firing at him. Inaba shrieked as the bullet missed him by a hair's breadth. "Anyways, this is getting no where. Noah, do you know what world the wolf was meant to go?"

The teen genius shook her head before looking down in thought. "I only found a wave signal of another world coming from a dimension near ours. While I was developing the time-space jump chair," said Noah, "I realized that there were actually multiple worlds near each other in that dimension, but since the purpose was to send the wolf somewhere he can't return from, I didn't research that much into it. From the look of things though, it's like a past version of our world."

"Since you found it by its signal, can't you tune in to it again?" said Yuuta, tilting his head as he thought about the pros and cons of bringing Kei back. The cons outweighed everything. "If not, maybe we can tune in to his spirit through Soumei or necromancy." Given the existence of ghosts, werewolves, and talking goats in their world, Kei finding his way back to their world after death shouldn't be too impossible.

"He's not dead, Assistant." said Ogino, who was confident of his non-biological son's ability to take care of himself.

Noah hummed. "If the machine haven't been completely fried, I would have been able to recover some data or traces, but…" All heads turned toward Inaba, who shrank with dropped ears at the amount of judging eyes directed at him. The werewolf mumbled an apology, while blaming the goat and Lorenzo under his breath. Suddenly, Noah perked. "My lab! If I combine that data with that program I should be able to estimate where he end up, though it's rather risky to do a trial and error for this kind of thing…" Noah trailed off, cupping her chin with her hand. Within another minute, however, she ran toward the door. "Sis, and you Wolf, come with me- we should be able to get back your assistant in a few days."

Gabriella and Inaba glanced at each other, sharing a thought that all leaders of a pack would understand, before following Noah to her laboratory at the abandoned hospital. As Yuuta watched his boss left him to go save the other assistant, he sulked with unshed tears and vanished at the speed of sound. Left alone with tied up Valentino and Lorenzo, the two main pillars of the Valentino Family, Ogino observed them. The goat had fainted from the amount of blood that rushed into his head, causing the muffled screams to become even more desperate and annoying than before.

_Should I turn them in now?_ Ogino thought, unable to keep from feeling disappointed that after all their previous attempts, the two criminals would be arrested so easily.


	4. Forced New Roads

**Chapter 3: Forced New Roads**

The youngest prince of Kou, Hakuryuu, couldn't believe what his sister had just said. He didn't want, nor need, an assistant. His frown deepened even more at the raven-haired stranger's reply.

"Y-Yes!" Kei answered, too afraid to say no. Besides, it couldn't be that bad right? He was used to being an assistant anyway. To ignore the uncomfortable feeling in his chest, he turned to the boy he would be serving from now on - at least, until Inaba-san and the others found a way to bring him home.

Hakuei smiled brightly, then turned to the boy who walked to stand beside her despite his deep, still bleeding wounds. "This is my younger brother, Hakuryuu." The princess gestured toward the boy whose face shared many of her features, although half was covered by burn scar.

As the eyes were set upon him, Hakuryuu's face became unreadable - neutral almost, but not quite. Slightly bowing with his hands out in their proper posture, the prince said, "I look forward to our time together. Kei-dono. Please treat me well from today onwards."

"Y-Yes, Hakuryuu-sama!" shouted Kei, a sweat running down his cheek as he bowed much lower than the prince. "And please, c-call me Kei, my prince..?"

Hakuryuu smiled, although he was somewhat uncomfortable - and somewhat happy - with how Kei addressed him. He was the fourth prince, far in line for the throne. "Alright, Kei."

Kei smiled back, and tried to ignore the shivering of his legs. Somehow, not only had he ended up all alone in a unfamiliar place, he was made to serve a prince - a prince who was younger, and had shown way more courage, than him.

Neither of them said a word after that.

Hakuei decided to interfere, "Hakuryuu, Kei, you two should go to get those injuries treated." Finally remembering their wounds, as well as the cause, the two teenagers quickly headed to the medical room.

/vvv/

When they arrived at the room where the strange creature - as no one was sure the humanoid cat could be considered human - was being kept, Hakuryuu and Kei found many servants trying to heal the creature, although with little success. When a servant - who wasn't doing anything important - noticed Hakuryuu, she saluted and began treating his wounds. Another servant came toward Kei.

As servants were blocking the view of the patients, Hakuryuu asked, "Where is the one I ordered you to treat?"

The servant flinched, but did not stop bandaging him. "Prince Hakuryuu, we are afraid that she cannot be saved without magic. She is still breathing but," she paused for a moment, "Her skull is completely crushed, and many internal organs and bones are damaged."

Hakuryuu nodded, although his body had begun to heat up as memories of his own near-death experience surfaced. "Are there any magician available at this moment in the palace?" he said, causing Kei to look toward him.

"We have requested but…" The need of the fourth prince takes a backseat to those of the emperor and higher-ranked princes like Kouen, Hakuryuu knew without needing to be told. It also did not help that most of the magicians - that weren't part of Al-Thamen - belonged in Kouen's and Kouha's army.

Hakuryuu took a deep breath. He could not ask anyone in that organization for help - he would rather die before that - so it appeared there was no hope. After his wounds were treated, Hakuryuu gently gestured the old woman out of his way. The prince then walked toward the bed most swarmed with servants carrying bandages and other medical tools he lacked the knowledge to name. The servants stepped out of his way.

Neferpitou was drifting in and out of conscious, as he had worsened his injuries during his resistance against that human boy. Although he was aware, he could not do anything against the humans swarming around and touching him with all sorts of things - such as to soak away the blood on his face and to remove his soiled clothing.

Then, a warm hand covered one of his, spreading Nen throughout the inside of his body. Pitou panicked, forcing himself to sit up and glare at the scarred face of the human standing next to him. The boy's eyes were wide, and he showed no signs of hostility or malice. Pitou's fur stopped bristling, although his ears remain flat against the top of his head. Whatever this human did, Pitou regained control of his Nen returning because of it.

"Doctor Blythe," Pitou murmured.

As his Nen materialized a giant porcelain doll with red hair and a solemn face, all but one of the able-bodied humans ran out the door - pushing against or dragging out each other as they tried to escape.

The 14-year-old prince observed the motionless, half-naked body lying before him, noting the lack of blue liquid and strangely even breathing of the creature. Hakuryuu had always been under the impression that when people were dying, their breathing would be harsh and shallow as they try to continue fighting.

_He accepted his death?_ Hakuryuu thought bitterly, even though he had entertained the idea of giving up on the creature just seconds ago. Placing his right hand on top of a clawed one, Hakuryuu channeled his Magoi into the humanoid cat, trying to see for himself the internal condition of the dying creature. If he really was a failed experiment of Al-Thamen, there could be some useful information.

At least, that was what he intended.

Four sharp claws dug into the back of his hand, clinging on tightly even as he stepped away and tried to free his bleeding hand. The four-fingered hand let go willingly when the body to which it was attached sat in an upright position.

Hakuryuu, and everyone else in the room, felt before they could even comprehend the situation or glance at the Chimera Ant - felt the hostility embodied in Pitou's Nen, covering the entire 20 feet by 10 feet room in an instant and sucking oxygen out of the air. There was a stampede as everyone except Hakuryuu tried to run out of the door as fast as possible, toward safety and fresh air.

The young prince would have escaped too, had his feet not been rooted to the ground, and he wasn't feeling the same sick feeling as when he was caught among the fire with his older brothers. Looking at the doll-like monster, Hakuryuu had trouble breathing and his voice was caught in his dried throat. It wasn't like when he confronted his mother about what Hakuyuu said, but it was almost the same.

Nothing happened though, and as he stared back into the blood red eyes of Pitou, Hakuryuu could suddenly breathe easier. The humanoid cat wasn't his mother, his eyes were not shining with coldness and smug superiority. The creepy doll connected to his tail only seemed to be for repairing his injured face too… there was nothing to be scared of.

"Hakuryuu-sama! Are you alright?!" shouted Kei from the doorway, his legs trembling although the raven-haired boy wanted to come in.

Breaking his eye contact with Pitou, Hakuryuu turned toward his new retainer and absentmindedly nodded. When the prince saw that the nurses and other servants were still behind Kei, he scanned the room. Besides the royal guard, there were five patients who seemed to be soldiers on temporary medical leave. All of them were still on guard, wearing a determined expression worthy of Kou soldiers. It seemed Hakuryuu had embarrassed himself as a prince.

After composing himself with a deep breath, Hakuryuu smiled at Pitou - whose eyes had not swayed from him even once.

"I'm glad that you are capable of healing yourself," said Hakuryuu, although he was slightly unnerved by Pitou's intense stare. "Please, tell me what happened.. and where you came from."

Nothing in the ruby eyes wavered, and like before, the humanoid cat would not answer Hakuryuu. Since the suffocating feeling was gone, servants were starting to fill the room again. Although most avoided coming close to Pitou and his bed, a few of them were asking of the prince's condition and requesting that he return to his lessons.

Hakuryuu was hardly paying attention to the stammering servants, but he nodded before glancing at Pitou and saying, "Please locate the other patients to another infirmary, I believe it will be safer for them there."

"B-But my prince..." a servant stuttered. Closing off an entire medical room was beyond the power of a fourth prince. Hakuryuu resisted the urge to glare, although more at his powerlessness than the old nurse.

"Isn't it fine?" a scantily clad man said as he walked over, and placed his arm around Hakuryuu's shoulder. "You found something really interesting, Hakuryuu."

"High Priest," said Hakuryuu, "What are you doing here?" Given his schedule, the magi should have assumed he was at the library with his tutors.

"You requested a magician didn't you? None of them would come but they're not worth your time anyway," said Judal, smiling, "So what do you need magic for?"

"Everything is fine now, High Priest." said Hakuryuu as he nudged the magi away with his elbow. Judal stopped smiling.

"Hakuryuu, you're bleeding." said Judal, grabbing the prince's right hand. While running his thumb over the holes on the back of Hakuryuu's hand, Judal caught sight of the bandages wrapped around his arms and under his tattered clothes. The magi glanced coldly at Pitou, whose fur was standing on ends, then at Doctor Blythe.

Turning toward the servants, most of whom flinched under Judal's gaze, he said, "You all let this happened?"

Kei had no idea what was going on, which was worrying given the people and situations he had to deal with back in his normal world. The cat girl they found dying in the yard was perfectly capable of healing herself, albeit with a creepy nurse doll that reminded Kei of Noah's inventions. Since the people of this world freaked out, and hid behind him of all people, such ability was definitely not normal in this world. Did she arrive from another world like him? But two people transporting to the same place from two different worlds at the same time felt unreal at best, and impossible at worst…

_And what's with that guy?_ Kei thought, staring after the guy who had rudely pushed past him, _Middle Eastern style clothing in a palace that obviously belong to Chinese Empire?_

"High Priest, what are you doing here?" said Hakuryuu, although Kei barely heard him from so far away.

_He's a high priest? He looks more like a dancer or something!_

"Are you alright?"

The raven-haired teen turned lifelessly toward the middle-aged woman gazing at him with attentive eyes. It seemed she did not have a job to return to at the moment."Huh?"

"You are sweating," she said, offering him a towel, "You're not from around here, are you? How did you get in the palace?"

Kei swallowed, nodding a thank as he accepted the towel. He could not say he had been sweating because he was trying not to shout something rude in a world he shouldn't exist. "I-I'm Hakuryuu-sama's personal assistant. Princess Hakuei appointed me today." Kei said while thinking,_ literally like ten minutes ago._

"I see, well, you should get a new set of clothes," the woman said, just as someone called her to help move a patient. "You're standing out a lot - too much." With that, she walked away, leaving Kei to stare at his blue jacket and jeans. _But these are ordinarily clothes…_

"I TOTALLY STAND OUT!"

/vvv/

While Hakuryuu and his new retainer visited Pitou, Hakuei and Seishun returned to the preparation for their journey. As the first princess had been chosen by the High Priest to capture a dungeon, she was allowed to take as much supplies as she wished for the quest. Of course, that was only the words of the emperor, as the actual tasks of securing the necessary items and manpower fell on Hakuei's attendants. Hereby, the amount of the supplies she could take depended on the abilities of her and her potential households.

"Seishun," Hakuei said, capturing her assistant's attention. The cyan-haired boy looked up from his scroll, which listed the things they still needed to gather. There wasn't a lot, so they could set off by tomorrow if the rest of today went as planned.

"Yes Princess?"

"How did you realize that boy was there?" She was ashamed to say that she did not realize the presence of a stranger in a bush merely a few feet away. Such inability would be fatal in a dungeon.

"I saw a blood trail on the ground that looked new," Seishun informed, "At first, I thought they were from that humanoid cat, but then I saw him in the bushes." Hakuei gasped, but felt relieved despite her conscience.

"You mean he wasn't really hiding at all?"

Seishun nodded, his brows furrowed. "He hid very poorly, yet we didn't notice him."

After a couple of minutes had gone by, Hakuei suddenly said, "Maybe... He is somehow different from us..?"

The dual swordsman's head snapped toward his princess, "H-Huh!? Then why did you choose him as Prince Hakuryuu's attendant?"

"I felt… that I could trust him…" She thought for a moment. "Then again, I'm not very sure either…"

"Eh..?"

/vvv/

"What's up with him?" Judal commented, tilting his head at the black-haired boy - 2 years younger than him - who had just broken the tension in the room.

"He's… my retainer." Hakuryuu said. The prince sighed as he averted his eyes from Kei, who seemed to be in a mental breakdown over something. He focused instead on removing Judal's hand from his. The magi let him, although he hummed absentmindedly. His ruby eyes were fixated on Kei.

"Hey, what did you say to him?" a servant murmured to her coworker, trying to keep her voice as soft as possible. Hakuryuu glanced at her without moving his head.

"What? This isn't my fault, I just told him he needs a change of clothes."

The young prince did notice that the older teen's outfit was weird, but had not put much thought into it until now. He had assumed that such were the way people dressed in Kei's homeland… wherever it was. Hakuryuu frowned. Before he could even protest, a stranger who was most likely not a citizen of Kou had been made into his assistant. Only the words of the emperor could overturn the first princess's words, and Hakuryuu had no doubt that the shallow man would even care.

"The two of you," Hakuryuu said, turning to the gossiping women who flinched under his gaze, "Please get my retainer some new clothing."

"O-Of course Your Highness!" the two said simultaneously. As they hurried away, one of them hissed, "You should have kept your word shut."

It would take an hour before Doctor Blythe mend his wounds enough for him to move about without too much difficulty, then another thirty minutes until he could properly fight. Since there was no immediate threat to his king and Komugi was safe with Pouf, as far as Pitou knew, he could - he _must_, the royal guard reasoned - afford this time to recover his strength.

Although he heard and understood that scarred boy's words, Pitou felt no need to reply. Then, almost too soon, the boy's attention refocused to the other humans - including an especially strange one. As such, Pitou failed to obtain any useful information regarding his current location. However, the Chimera Ant could tell that they were not part of those attackers' group, and were not intending to cause him harm. For that, Neferpitou decided to stay put.

Humans continued to buzz around him, sometimes calmly yet nervously… sometimes on the verge of panic. They slowly decreased in number.

Soon after all his wounds healed, sunlight dimmed and turned crimson, bathing the white walls and sheets in soft warm colors. Pitou relaxed further, and further still as the long room was slowly engulfed by darkness. Darkness of a moonless night. Rather than hunting for information, the royal guard felt like going to sleep.

Against his conscious thoughts, a nagging instinct enhanced by the heaviness of his muscles told him to wait.

When a young human girl tremblingly tip-toed in, her fingers tightly clenching two unlit candles, Pitou could tell she was bothered by his eyes, staring at them as though they were glowing. Pitou smiled, and the human scrambled away.

The old used candle remained on the wooden floor, completely ignored by the infirmary's sole inhabitant. Soothed by the melodious sound of leaves and branches, Neferpitou slipped into sleep's embrace.

/vvv/

He found himself standing beneath a large oak tree. A serene meadow, with grass and flowers of the purest and brilliant shades, stretched out before him. Everything was bathed in warmth of the great sun in the clear blue sky. The scenery around him seemed to whirl, its bright colors mixing and fading only to turn almost unbearable a second later. Then… an all-too-familiar voice called out to him.

"Pitou." The oldest royal guard turned, and kneeled instantly.

There, behind him was his king and Komugi, standing side by side, their hands linked. A little further back stood his peers, Pouf and Youpi. Their expressions were unreadable, yet not exactly unpleasant.

"King… what…?" The words he wished to ask died on his tongue as he felt wetness on his cheeks. Something inside him was mourning, but his human-influenced brain could not process why.

Did not wish to acknowledge why, even as he stared up at his king, whose body seemed to be playing tricks on his eyes. All of them looked slightly transparent...

"Pitou, We don't have much time so I'll make this quick. I am glad to see you're alive, even if it's in a different universe." His king said, "And in this new world, live - find a new king to follow if you must."

"King -"

"I am no longer your king." he said, his eyes firm, "I am Meruem."

Pitou could hardly breathe as he feebly yelled, "No..! King! I-"

His king silenced him with a look. "Pitou. This is an order." The too-bright world was fading, leaving him alone in the darkness.

"You have done well as my royal guard, Pitou. You have my gratitude."

That was the last thing Neferpitou heard, for he did not hear his peers' words... nor Komugi's thank you. "T-Thank you for saving my life, I promise I'll take care of Meruem."

By then the darkness had engulfed him and disappeared.

/vvv/

Neferpitou woke up to the light of dawn, the white walls reflecting the golden glow. Right beside him was that scarred boy, who seemed frozen in place as he stopped wringing a cloth… but Pitou couldn't care. He couldn't care less about anything anymore - what matters now that he had lost his king?! He failed, the whole royal guards failed!

The human boy was staring at him, with the same expression as his king… the same gaze before he faded away… Pitou could feel his body crying and clawing at the sheets, a fist reaching out to smash the vase on the end table. There was an innate need to destroy everything, to destroy reality… this world itself… anything to get back to his king.

Everything but the wide-eyed boy next to him.


	5. Extra: Kurapika and Hakuryuu

Hello to all of people who have read, favorited, followed, and/or reviewed this fic. Thank you very much. This is the same note I have added to the prologue, but in case you haven't saw it:

/vvv/

"I decided to revised all my chapters because I really appreciate all the reviews/favs/follows this fic has gotten. When I was rereading my posted chapters to refresh my memory, I noticed a lot of flaws and plot holes (admittedly because I was itching to write Sindria Arc and wanted to get there ASAP, thus neglected to properly set up this fic). So I want to apologize to all my readers, as such is not the quality you all deserve and such would reflect poorly in the plot unless I revise these chapters.

That said, there is not much difference in the revised prologue, chapter 1, and chapter 2. Chapter 3 is when things actually changed, since I elaborated more on Pitou, Kei, and Hakuryuu's relationships and situations.

Also one last thing, I decided to leave the honorifics -dono (Lord/Lady, but lack self-humbling), -san (Mr./Ms.), and -sama (Lord/Lady/Master; "a term of great respect, one step higher than -san") untranslated because they don't really have an english equivalent that wouldn't really sound weird or one that is completely accurate. -kun and -chan as well because they don't have an english equivalent at all.

I'm sorry for this long and wordy note ^^;;;"

/vvv/

Also, since I don't want/can't have this be just an author's note, here is a little extra scene - or a preview of the future if you wish - where Kurapika "somehow" ends up in the world of Magi and meets Hakuryuu who is with the forces he has gathered for the rebellion. Please enjoy :D

* * *

**Extra/Preview of Future**

Once they were alone, although still in the range of Pitou's En, Kurapika let one of his chains - the Dowsing Chain- hang perfectly still in front of him. "Why would you want to kill the empress?" said Kurapika. His gray eyes focused on the scar that covered half of the prince's face. It appeared be a burn scar, one that possibly extended down to the areas covered by his clothes.

Hakuryuu glared, and remained silent. The prince had no need to explain himself, especially since it was unlikely that the Kuruta would join him, but… as the closest link to Neferpitou's past, he felt it would be beneficial to answer. "She killed my family, and she is the leader of a dangerous organization in this world." said Hakuryuu, "It is impossible to let her live." Although he was wary of the stranger, Hakuryuu figured there was no point in lying, that is, beyond the fact he didn't like doing so. The chain remained still.

"Who did she killed? With what reason and method?"

"My father was the first emperor, and my brothers were next in line for the crown. I am not too sure of my father's circumstance in death, but my brothers died in front of me when the palace was burned down. Everything was so she could gain control of the empire."

"Were they tortured?"

"No… although they had to fight some of the organization's puppets while protecting me." said Hakuryuu, "I do not understand how that is relevant to why we are having this discussion." As far as Hakuryuu could tell, Kurapika wanted to figure out whether he should take Neferpitou back to his world.

Kurapika let out a soft sigh, although he did not drop his arm. Although the boy in front of him was being completely honest, he could not let his guard down. Thinking it was only fair, Kurapika said, "My goal is revenge as well. My tribe was tortured and killed by a group of criminals. They were after something only my people have."

For a moment, Hakuryuu's eyes were wide and alarmed. His face seemed full of innocence as he looked down shamefully. He looked like a kind-hearted person, not someone who was determined to kill his own mother. When Kurapika did not speak further, Hakuryuu said, "S-Since you are here, there are other survivors right..?"

Kurapika shook his head, causing Hakuryuu to lose his rather awkward smile. "I only survived because I was not there when they striked. I counted every corpse, all of them had their eyes dug out, so none could have been a member of that troupe."

One look at Hakuryuu's face was all the blond male needed to continue. "When people of the Kuruta Clan experience strong emotions, their eyes turn scarlet. In my world, they are are considered one of the seven most beautiful things in the world."

"Were you able to take revenge?"

"Yes," said Kurapika firmly, "although I did not kill all of them." If he was taken back by Hakuryuu's gasp, Kurapika did not show it.

"Why? Don't you hate all of them?" said Hakuryuu, almost shouting as his posture shifted to one that was not unlike when he talked to Hakuei. It might be his defensive position, since the young prince looked like he was backed into a corner, where his choices were to attack or to run - or to do both at the same time.

"Of course," said Kurapika, well-awared of the change in Hakuryuu's mismatched eyes, "but, I made sure that they could no longer function as a group. There is no need to kill all of them, not yet anyway."

When incomprehension remained written all over the prince's face, and something close to hurt shimmered in his eyes, Kurapika asked, "Do you believe I should have killed all of them?"

"Yes!" said Hakuryuu, although his eyes did not seem to be seeing Kurapika. Maybe he was thinking of someone else, or was trying to convince himself. "Since… hatred will never be erased like that…! The only thing you can do... is erase the ones you hate!"

Kurapika nodded, although not full-heartedly. "That might be true… I thought similarly to that as well, but then a friend… he reminded me of another thing I needed to do when I thought my revenge - my reason for living - was gone." said Kurapika as he let his arm dropped back to his side. There was no need for his Dowsing Chain's ability. "I have to find and retrieve all of my people's eyes." said the Kuruta, calmness with traces of longing and something else overflowing his tone of voice.

Hakuryuu had composed himself, his back straight as he looked deep into Kurapika's eyes. "I'm… living for revenge, yes," said Hakuryuu, as he thought back to his conversation with Alibaba. "But I'm not wrong, and I just... I need to kill Gyokuen to be able to move on." Maybe he should have said "we," since Judal told him they were in the same boat. "It is better for this world if she dies."

Maybe another person will smile, glad that Hakuryuu was not completely thinking of only himself or simply to lighten up the mood, but Kurapika was not that person. Instead, the Kuruta said, "The friend I mentioned, Gon, he tried to kill Neferpitou for revenge as well. He almost died, and sacrificed something that is really priceless, but because someone really important to him was killed and made into a puppet out of entertainment, he needed to do it. That is what he told me."

Hakuryuu looked down. He had not been aware, or even curious, about the reason for Pitou's nen ability. A part inside him thought that his assistant should be punished- or should not have lived- for what he did, but another part could not stop thinking about how devoted and supportive the Chimera Ant had been to him. "..Why did your friend let Pitou live?" said Hakuryuu at last.

"He did not." said Kurapika, causing Hakuryuu's eyes to meet Kurapika's. Out of all things, the prince had not been expecting that. "Gon did not intend to let your retainer live, in fact, he killed Neferpitou. It was just that, instead of where souls are supposed to go, your retainer ended up here."

"...Is that why you are here? To take Pitou back so your friend can take revenge?"

The Kuruta shook his head. "Gon came to me because he wanted to know where Neferpitou disappeared to, but he wasn't looking more blood. Before I came to this world, Gon asked me to tell Neferpitou that his mentor is alive… he was reincarnated, so he doesn't need healing anymore."

Hakuryuu frowned. "My brothers, they cannot come back to life… and your people cannot either," murmured Hakuryuu as his vision started to get blurry, "So what should people like us do?!" The young prince thought about the Fire, and how his eldest brother stabbed himself so that he could protect him from the flames with his blood. He protected him so that he could get revenge for them. _It can't be that we are just supposed to accept the unfairness of everything, that's… that's just ridiculous!_

"You said that you can only move on if you kill the empress." said Kurapika, cool gaze against the other's frantic ones, "If you truly believe that, then continue. I have neither reason nor authority to stop you." Besides, doing so would be rather hypocritical. The Kuruta watched Hakuryuu wiped his escaped tears in silent, wondering what kind of future is in store for the young prince. Even though they had just met each other, they were birds of a feather… each chained by a trail of blood and hatred. For both their sake, Kurapika sincerely hoped the young man in front of him would end up with a good future.

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If you want, please leave a review on whether or not you would like to see this outcome in this fic's canon :D


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